Hi all!
I have searched forums and not found an answer to this. I discovered 4 days after a competition that the rear focus ring on my scope is stuck. At first it was just moving between the lowest setting (10m) and a quarter inch into the full rotation. Customer service asked me to try to turn it harder, and now it is stuck ~3/8ths of an inch past the lowest setting (stuck between 10m and 20m).
On the phone with customer service I mentioned 2 potential causes that came to mind, and another one just occurred to me:
I have searched forums and not found an answer to this. I discovered 4 days after a competition that the rear focus ring on my scope is stuck. At first it was just moving between the lowest setting (10m) and a quarter inch into the full rotation. Customer service asked me to try to turn it harder, and now it is stuck ~3/8ths of an inch past the lowest setting (stuck between 10m and 20m).
On the phone with customer service I mentioned 2 potential causes that came to mind, and another one just occurred to me:
- I have some of that self-adhesive ace bandage type camouflage wrap around parts of the scope, excluding the focus ring itself. Perhaps the edge of one of tape strips tucked into the ring from the tube side in such a way that a loose thread became stuck under the ring.
- The competition was rainy and for a large portion of that time the rifle was muzzle-up on a rifle stand. For a timeline, I checked the focus for the first time 4 days after the competition when I found it stuck. On the day of the competition when I returned home:
- I didn't put any solvent or lube in any scope parts. That seemed unnecessary and maybe harmful. I tried some solvent 4 days after the competition when I discovered the focus ring stuck and it didn't improve the situation.
- I dried the rifle (including the scope with the camo tape still on it) with cloths/patches and used my wife's hairdryer on medium, moving it such that it didn't stay in one place long. In a previous task (heating Militec 1 lube) using my infrared thermometer alongside the hairdryer, I know the medium setting can get an object to 150 deg F if in one spot point-blank for a couple minutes. This is why I moved it around and held it at a distance, so I expect the scope only ever got to 110ish degrees at the absolute maximum.
- One of the vertical rifle stands at a stage was short enough that the rifle rested on the objective lens. It was set gently there twice.
